Tired Of Hanging Around [CD]

The surprise success story of the "Scousadelic" Liverpool scene, on Tired Of Hangin’ Around The Zutons trump their debut with an assured, confident collection of songs that accentuate their skill for vintage R&B, white-man soul, and some of the best rowdy sax since The Specials strode the earth. Perhaps in retrospect it’s easy to see why this band have struck the public nerve in the way The Coral and The Bandits never quite could. No spooked, surrealist pirate swashbucklers here--The Zutons’ songs are grounded in the here and now, numbers like "It’s The Little Things We Do", the sound of frontman Dave McCabe weaving an unsteady path from barstool to barstool with dwindling pay-cheque clutched in fist, or "Valerie"--a message to an ex-lover reminiscent of the tattered majesty of The Faces in their garrulous heyday. Much improved is Abi Harding’s saxophone work, now capable of sensitive, jazzy undertones ("You’ve Got A Friend In Me") or sudden bursts of nutty, bandy-legged strut, and McCabe’s soulful vocal is neatly bolstered by full-band backing vocals that add an enjoyably cabaret sense of drama to even the twitchiest blast of skiffle-punk. The sound of a band coming on in leaps and bounds. --Louis Pattison

So no-one killed The Zutons, thank goodness for that. Everyone's favourite Liverpudlians are back with an album of slick, poppy tunes which will have you humming all the way to the local beer garden.

The new single "Why Won't You Give Me Your Love " is guaranteed to increase your serotonin levels, while "Hello Conscience" and the title track will keep festival goers rockin' for the rest of the year.

There's less guitar and more sax this time; Abi Harding even gets to add her vocals to the soppy "You've Got A Friend In Me".

After a few listens Tired Of Hanging Around sounds every bit as good as its predecessor. Let's hope they continue to fight another day! --Joanna Witt

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Tired Of Hangin’ Around was produced by Stephen Street (The Kaiser Chiefs/ The Smiths) and recorded at Townhouse and Olympic Studios at the tail end of 2005.

After triumphant appearances last year at the V & Glastonbury Festivals and huge shows with U2, Oasis, REM and The Killers, The Zutons have forged a reputation as one of the best and most popular live bands in the country. The Zutons are: David McCabe – vocals / guitar, Abi Harding – Saxophone, Boyan Chowdhury – guitar, Sean Payne – drums and Russell Pritchard – Bass.